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Root Canal Doctor, Dentist (DDS or equivalent)

Category: Dental

Satisfied Customers: 1269

Experience: Endodontist (DDS,MS)-49 years of practice, Endodontics Professor at Loyola University School of Dentistry, Air Force Veteran

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Hi there I am looking at (I have mentioned dental but am general on this question) healthcare and/or doctors for marketeting purposes. What are your biggest frustrations that you are willing to call out in your business today? and a few more? Is time anIssue in your workplace? What are your feelings towards online marketing to promote your practise? Do you have a website? thankyou all in advance!!

Hi, in my practice it is managed care and the insurance companies and their interference in providing the proper dental care to patients. Time is not an issue in my workplace. We have an active website but because we are a specialty practice we do not promote beyond having a presence on the web.

Patient load has decreased over time because many patients will stay in their networks to avoid higher fees eventhough they may be better served outside their network. Many times dental procedures are directed to covered expenses rather than what is best for the patint in the long run. Do you have any specific issues you wish to discuss?

G'day mate! The insurance companies are an interesting point and you are not the first to have raised this issue. I live in Australia and I am unsure if these Insurance issues are the same over here. I guess I should ask you your 2nd biggest frustration next to this! as this doesn't really apply to me in Oz. (interesting too that time is not an issue,I thought it might be and am glad you mentioned this) I had another dentist say that patients cancelling is a frustration too.The issues I am trying to figure out are for marketing purpose's, If I can understand the needs and wants frustrations etc of the dental industry then I can have a pretty good idea how to make my site the best service it can be for this particular business. I wonder if the patient load decreasing is starting to become a problem, and if target marketing (seo, adwords facebook ad campaigns and all that) can help; i.e facebook campaigns leading visitors to blogs and articles about how dental procedures are directed to cover expenses rather than their best interests, maybe that would be an interesting campaign spreading more awareness of the industry. Hmm, I guess some of your thoughts about all this would be interesting. oh and anything that would peak your interest if there was a solution to your problem,kind regards,Matt

Hi Matt, patient cancellations are not a big issue for me because I am in a specialty practice and my patients are usually in some discomfort which makes them want to keep their appointments. The main reason our patients cancel is because they realize we may not be in their insurance network and they can save money by having someone in their network do the needed procedures. Even if they are not specialists. There are also many more dentists today then there were years ago which makes it much more competitive. There seems to be a dentist on every corner so patients have many more choices and will try not to have to travel as far for needed services. Your comment about "facebook campaigns leading visitors to blogs and articles about how dental procedures are directed to cover expenses rather than their best interests" may really be a great campaign to raise awareness about the probelm we dentists face with reagard to the insurance companies interference in dentistry. I am not sure there is a solution and most patients are referred to a particular dentist (if they do not already have one) by a friend or relative that is very happy with their current dentist. Patients are also reticent to travel long distances to see a dentist unless they are referred for a specific purpose or need. Almost all dentists today have a web presence but I am not sure how many new patients they actually gain from them. Just doing the right thing and good work over time seems to be the best way to insure that a dental practice will thrive. There are dentists that do advertise their services with fliers, magazines, weekly mailouts, etc. but again I am not sure it actually increase their patient load. After all, dentistry becomes a "as needed" health decision for many patients and will only seek help when their are issues with their mouths. Fortunatley there are enough folks that are smart enough to know that good dental health also improves their overall systemic health and their appearance as well and will endeavor to ensure that their children will be properly cared for as they develop. As far as I know most dentists do not utilize any ad agencies, etc. for successfully oincreasing their patient load. Hope this helps!